Waltee maesh jackson



(No Model.)

W. 1v1. JACKSON.

METHOD 0F DISGHARGING PROJEGTILES.

No. 887,517. Patented Aug. 7, 1888.

i Hl' n: I IIIIII I liiiliiii" Swami/bron UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.

WALTER MARSH JACKSON, or; NEW YORK, N. Y

METHOD. OF DISCHARGING PROJECTILES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 387,517, dated August 7, 1888.

Application filed May 23, 1888. Serial No. 214,810. (No model.)

To all whom it may-concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER MARSH JAcK- SON, of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Method of Discharging `Projectiles; and I do hereby dedischarge-orifice, and feeding this choked dis-l charge-orifice with projectiles-such as cannon-balls, bullets, or other missiles.

To carry my method into proper effect, I employ certain novel features of construction j and combinations of parts, as will behereinafter described and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the apparatus preferredin carrying out my improved method; Fig. 2 shows a section of a modified form of chokeddischarge-orifice, and Fig.,3 is also a modification.

A represents any suitable water forcing device-simple, compound, triple-expansion, or otherwise-and actuated by any suitable .power.-

It is desirable to employ a water-forcing device capable of forcing the water from a dis-` charge-orifice at a very high" pressure-say v.three thousand pounds to the square inch,more or less-the higher the pressure thebetter the result. The outlet nozzle or nozzles B are constructed of any suitable material and preferably bored straight, or may be made of a tube or tubes of great strength. This barrel or nozzle B is provided at its junction with the hydraulic supply with a plug-cock or other suitable cnt-off, C. Between this cut oli` C and the discharge-barrel D there is placed anp other cock, c, which is formed by the valvecasing being swiveled upon a recessed plug, d, the recesses of this plug being all around the latter, so that no matter which way the discharge-'barrel D is'turned it will always be in condition for action. In order that no propulsive energymay be lost, it is absolutely essential that the projectiles should snugly fill the barrel of the battery. As these projectiles are molded they are frequently very irregular and never perfectly round or spherical.

Means are provided'in the present invention whereby these irregular projectiles are always made t'o fill the barrel of the battery, so that the pressure is entirely relieved in front of the projectile While every'particle of energy is 'brought to bear upon the back of the projectile. This is effected in several ways, as illustrated in the modifications.

- In Fig. l it is done by providing a series of ring-packings, Z, about the interior circumferential area of the barrel, these rings being beveled toward the moving projectile. This form of barrel is designed moref especially for hard projectiles made of rigid material; butl for more pliable projectiles-such as lead bullets--a simple choked muzzle or discharge-orice, as illustrated in Fig. 2, would answer. 7 5

In Fig. 3 still another form of muzzle is shown. This is funnel-shaped and so located that the projectiles would roll along its lower side actuated simply by the current of the water or law of gravitation until one reached the choked muzzle, when it would be instantly ejected with enormous force, the entire pressure having been appliedl behind theprojectile, no spacebetween the projectile and barrel being left for the exit of water. The projectiles in this case take care of themselves, one following another in rapid succession, but yet never more than one at once,^7since only one could choke at a time.

Extending upwardly from the dischargebarrel another tube or conduit, E, the same size astheormer, designated the ammunition-conduit,? is located. Close to the junction of this conduit with the discharge-barrel is located a stop-cock, e, and again,about halfway up the conduit,another cock, f,is located.l

'Yet another cock or rather an ammunitioncontroller, g, .is situated near the apex ofthe conduit. A by-pass,-F,supplied with a suitn able valve, h, enters the conduit just below the loc v other missiles employed.

Having described the hydrodynamic gun, I

will endeavor to make clear the operation.-

Starting the pumping-engine, I place the water in a dynamic state of compression by forcing it against a column of imprisoned air, said column being contained in a lreceiver, H, located at a convenient point in the hydraulic supply and between the gun or guns and the water-forcing engine A. As soon as thehydraulicpressure indicator reaches the desired gu rethree thousand pounds, more or less, to the square inch-one or more of the stop-cocks which control the feed-water to the dischargebarrel are opened, and thereupon the water immediately rushes th rough the discharge-barrel with tremendous velocity, discharging at the muzzle. In order to make the battery eect ive as a weapon, it is absolutely necessary that very high pressure-be employed. Nothing less than a hundred pounds to the square inch would amount to anything, and five thousand pounds` would be none too great. A boiler cannot be operated beyond two hundred and fifty pounds to the square inch without burning out the engine-packings, injuring all the valves, and rapidly oxidizing iron and steel surfaces in the boiler, feed-pump, and en; gine. Hence to attain these enormous pressures some system of leverage must be introduced Vbetween the pistons operated by theprime energy-such as steam and those acted upon reciprocally which force the water. There are but three ways of doing this, all resulting in securing a greater-pressure to the square inch at the muzzle of the gun upon the discharged water than that exerted to the square inch upon the steam-b'oiler-to wit,the first by having the steam-pistons larger than the water-forcing department of the"engine, this being an instance of greater and less area and thesame time; the second, by having the steam-piston make a longer stroke than the pump-piston, both being the same size, this being an init-ance of leverage, the steam end being at the long and the water end at the short arm of the lever; the third, by having the steam-piston make more strokes a minute than the pump-piston, both beingl the same size. This third method is a difference in time and consequently another phase of the lever. The results of these three ways of securing the desired pressure are the same. To feed the discharge-barrel, the upper stop-cock, g, in the ammunition-conduit is now opened to a1- low bulletsto drop from the chute G into the conduit. As soon as filled, the middle cock,

f, is opened in order to let the bullets pass into the lower chamber, t', of the conduit. The middlecock, f, is now closed again and the upper chamber is refilled from the chute. It is evident that .the ammunition-controller g may be entirely dispensed with, as the object fof' the two chambers i t in the ammunitionconduit is simply to measure a fixed quantity of bullets,and so prevent crowdingand wedging against thestop-cocks.

Having charged. the lower chamber, t', of the conduit or magazine with bullets,closed the middle cock, and refilled the upper chamber, i', the gun is in readiness to be fired.`

The lower stop-cock, e, is now opened, as well as the valve b in the by-pass F, which leads from the hydraulic supply into the lower chamber of the conduit, supplying a column of water lunder pressure through cock c. The two currents thus being equalized, the bullets will fall into the barrel D and be hurled out with tremendous velocity. As the speed of the discharged water is much greater thanv that of thev falling bullets, and as only one bul-let at a time can be exposed to the discharged current, the bullets will'follow each other in very rapid succession into the barrel of the gun and be expelled much more rapidly from it; so, if the barrel of the gun be of the right length, each bullet will leave the gun before the next enters the barrel. As.

soon as all of the bullets in the lower chamber of the conduit are discharged, the lowerstop-cock, eis closed, also the valve h in the by-pass F, and the upper cocks are openedr so that the lower chamber will be again filled preparatory to repeating the firing.

As the bullets follow each other in such rapid succession, if the gun-barrel be swung through a part or the whole of a' circle the bullets may be discharged in all directions or in any one direction atwill, or be made to cover a line an inch, more or less, apart, according to the speed of the whole or partial revolution of the barrel on the swivel. Thus it may be seen that thousands of bullets may be discharged in a few minutes without vheating the gun in the least and without smoke.

It is evident that changes in the apparatus might be made, and l do not wish to limit myself to the means shown; but,

Having fully described my invention,what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,'"is- 1. The method of discharging projectiles from a hydraulic battery, consisting in dropping the projectiles into a jet of dischargewater under enormous pressure and forcing these projectiles through a choked orifice, substantiallyxas set forth.

2. The method of discharging projectiles by forcing water against a column of`- air, permitting this water to pass 'out through a choked 3. The method of discharging projectiles by forcing water against a'columu of air, passing the water out through a choked discharge -In testimony whereof. I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

barrel, and forcing projectiles from au ammu- W LTER M A RSI I J ACKSON 5 nitionconduit into this discharge-barrel by Witnesses?.

means of water under equal pressure back of GEO. M. XVARD,

said projectiles, substantially as set forth. Trios. E. HARPER. 

